President Donald Trump said on Sunday said that the United States and Ukraine are “a lot closer, maybe very close” to a peace deal after talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, though both leaders said the future of the Donbas region remains unsettled.
Trump, Zelenskiy Tout Progress On Framework Deal
According to a Reuters report, at a joint news conference, Trump said negotiators made “very significant” progress on a framework to end Russia’s invasion, including security guarantees for Kyiv and a ceasefire along current front lines. He said it should be clear “in a few weeks” whether the talks succeed but cautioned that “thorny issues” over territory could still derail an accord.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine and its partners had agreed on security guarantees, calling them “the key milestone in achieving a lasting peace.” Trump said the sides were “about 95%” there and signaled that European allies would “take over a big part” of long-term commitments.
Territory And Security Guarantees Remain Core Hurdles
Territory remains the core sticking point. Russia controls most of Donbas and about a fifth of Ukraine, according to Western estimates. Washington has floated a compromise “free economic zone” in remaining Ukraine-held areas if Kyiv pulls back its troops and has discussed shared control of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, while Zelenskyy has said any land deal must be approved by parliament or a referendum.
The war, Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II, is nearing its fourth year and has displaced millions. As per a report by the Associated Press, days before the summit, Russia launched large-scale missile and drone strikes that killed civilians and damaged infrastructure in Kyiv and other regions, Ukrainian officials and international monitors said.
Zelenskiy Signals Readiness As Trump Seeks Peace
After the talks, Zelenskyy wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “I thank @POTUS Donald Trump for a great meeting. We had a substantive discussion on all issues,” and said “Ukraine is ready for peace,” adding that negotiating teams will reconvene within days.
Trump has made ending the war a central foreign-policy goal and has previously expressed his openness to territorial concessions, including over occupied Ukrainian land, US ideas involving the Zaporizhzhia plant and warnings that the conflict could widen if diplomacy fails.
Read Next:
Photo Courtesy: noamgalai from Shutterstock
Recent Comments